A Voice from Bountiful

This world is crazy. If we look outside, especially now, we see a society that is full of anger, hate, despair, loneliness, greed, pride, and desperation. Unrest seems to be the new normal. Love, forgiveness, kindness, and peace seem to have vanished.

So, what does this all mean?

To me, it is an example of how history repeats itself. This has all happened before, many times. Society goes through these cycles of good and bad. From times of light and enlightenment, to times of darkness and isolation, and then back again.

It also can be a wakeup call. To wake up from our complacent spiritual slumber. The unrest should be able to cause us to pause, backup, and look up to the One who is running this whole show. To change ourselves, our families, and our societies and remember why we are here.

What can we do?

We should do exactly what has been done before! We can read about and emulate the righteous survivors in this repeating story of good versus evil. We can learn how to prepare ourselves for difficult times. We can learn all of this from the best history book ever written. The Book of Mormon.

One of the pinnacle moments of the Book of Mormon is in the chapters that describes the appearance of Jesus Christ here in America. The great author of love and peace had appeared right in the middle of one of the worst times of wickedness and unrest! How is that for irony? For those who were the bad guys, it was a horrible, awful, devastating event. Yet, for the righteous, it would be the exact opposite. Incredible peace, love, relief, and renewal.

I’ve tried to imagine myself in that place, and to envision the physical chaos it must have been. Absolute terror, confusion, anxiety, and despair. Think of earthquakes, lightening, and a tornado infested storm lasting 3 long hours. Only then to give way to complete and utter darkness lasting 3 even longer days. Imagine the despair, the complete hopelessness, and helplessness that would have been overwhelming.

But, in that exact moment of horrific emptiness and loneliness, the Savior appeared. The hopelessness immediately gave way to hope. The darkness gave way to light, and was forgotten. It would have been beyond amazing.

Its no wonder that for generations after this event, those that experienced this moment were some of the happiest people to have ever lived.

We can also experience the beauty of that special moment through their words and testimonies. Their writings help us to prepare ourselves to experience that exact same feeling again! And that is incredibly exciting!

Its exciting, because He will come again!

And, if our eyes and ears and hearts are open, we will see, and feel, and experience that moment, and know again what it was like when he came amid those desperate conditions.

When we see Him again, we can be just like those righteous survivors who looked up and saw the Savior with their own eyes.We can also look up through whatever chaos we experience to see the brightest light through the darkest night.

A Voice from Bountiful

Prophetic storms, and tempests came,
In that first month, on that fourth day¹,
To shake, divide, with lightning fire,
Fulfilled the warnings of God’s ire².

The cities of the wicked burned³,
or sunk, beneath the earth o’erturned,
This righteous land- now sin depraved,
Lay drowned in seas of frothing waves4.

The face of all the earth was changed5,
The mountains flattened into plains,
Where traveled highways stood in place,
Now a churned and shattered waste6.

Continued mighty acts of power,
Displayed for three chaotic hours7,
Burning, sinking, rending stones,
Destroying all, the land o’erthrown.

The groaning earth sent deafening sounds,
From cracking, splitting, solid ground,
To fill the air and ears of all
survivors, to their knees did fall.

Then blinding mists of thickened haze,
Would smother light for three full days8,
While wailing, weeping, hopeless cries,
Were sent to God thru blackened skies.

Then, thru vapor thick and dark,
A Voice!9 A Voice! A piercing spark!
A hope began to swell! Arise!
A light again before their eyes!

The Father’s voice then filled the land10,
all open ears did understand11,
The introduction of His Son,
The Risen Christ, the Holy One!

Descending now from Heaven’s cloud,
His light began to part the shroud,
of darkness, sorrow, and despair,
and shine upon those gathered there!

With arms outstretched to all below12,
exposing hand and wrist to show,
The marks, that proved that it was He,
The Crucified, of Gallilee.

He spake with loving voice, “Behold!”
“I am Jesus Christ, The Lord,
Of whom the prophets have foretold,
Would come again into the world13“

“Come feel my hands, and feet, and side14,
I, for thee, was crucified,
I am the light, and life for all,
I drank the bitter cup of gall15.”

“And I have come to gather in,
Reedeem the world from death and sin,
Atoned, and suffered for thy sake,
It is my off’ring, Come! Partake!”

And all the gathered bent their knees,
And worshiped him with faith filled pleas,
And cried aloud with hope and awe,
Hosannah! Bless the name of God16!

The prophecy fulfilled at last,
The darkness from the land outcast,
Replaced by light, from Jesus Christ,
Who’d suffered all, and paid the price.

Our Savior now! He lives and reigns!
His mighty pow’r unbinds our chains!
He strengthens us, when light is dim,
If we look up, and turn to Him!